After CCEnergy managed the installation of the solar hot water system on the Good Earth Natural Foods Store that opened in 2012, we set about designing the solar PV system. Due to town politics, we opted to install the panels on the rooftop of Fairfax plaza, across the street from the store, and bring the electricity back to the store via underground cables.

There were a number of challenges we met, and overcame, along the way. One of those challenges was the lack of an acceptable location for the 2 100w inverters. To meet this challenge, we had a 80 square foot concrete vault constructed to house the inverters (8” thick walls and 40,000lbs), and placed the entire thing under the parking lot, with sufficient access through a manhole and significant ventilation.

The 201.5kW system provides approximately 35% of Good Earth’s power, with the rest supplied by Marin Clean Energy’s 100% deep green renewable energy program.

To learn more about this solar install, see real time tracking of the system, and learn more about Good Earth Natural Foods Store, click here